BusinessLine·2025-12-04 04:13Core Viewpoint - Microsoft Corp. has lowered expectations for business customer spending on its cloud unit's AI marketplace, leading to a decline in its stock price by as much as 3%, marking the largest intraday fall since November 18 [1]. Group 1: Sales Performance and Quotas - Several divisions within Microsoft have reduced sales quotas for AI products after many salespeople failed to meet targets in the fiscal year ending in June, indicating a shift in strategy to address customer reluctance to invest more in AI [2]. - One sales unit initially aimed for a 50% increase in customer spending on the Foundry marketplace but saw less than 20% of salespeople meet their targets, prompting a reduction of the growth goal to approximately 25% for the current fiscal year [5]. Group 2: Market Sentiment and Technology Viability - The market is showing skepticism regarding the justification of massive investments in AI infrastructure by Microsoft and its competitors, as businesses find it challenging to quantify savings from AI and note the technology's propensity for costly errors [4]. - Microsoft’s Foundry serves as a marketplace for AI models and tools, distinct from its Copilot products aimed at office workers, with significant demand for its AI computing power stemming from its relationship with OpenAI [6].